


Displacement

by occamysRazor



Category: Godsfall Podcast D&D Campaign
Genre: Enemies to Friends(?), Featuring Phryane "why am I here I thought I finally got my shit figured out" Tinueth, Gen, Godsfall Secret Santa, Haldir "I'm not taking any of your bullshit" Loran, I planned this as a oneshot but I guess it's a chapter fic now, They bicker because they care, and Eriska "ooh look it's time to fuck shit up" Taine
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-12-29
Updated: 2017-12-29
Packaged: 2019-02-23 12:09:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,893
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13189794
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/occamysRazor/pseuds/occamysRazor
Summary: Team "Misunderstood" finds themselves in a very tricky situation... one without an apparent solution. Who could possibly have the power to take them from their current plane of existence, and why? Will they ever find a way back to Khalgun? Or will they be stuck here in this strange new world? Or, even more likely, will they kill each other before they even find their first town?





	Displacement

**Author's Note:**

> Hello, everybody! This is my contribution to the Godsfall Discord's Secret Santa. So... surprise, Moose! Hope you like it. I originally intended for this to be a oneshot, but, uh, I don't think that's happening. So expect more in the future! I'll try my best to be quick and consistent with updates; I'd hate to give you a half-finished product. I estimate about 3 or 4 more chapters (5 at the most) before it's done.
> 
> Thank you so much for reading, and let me know what you think!

It was definitely magic. There was nothing else it could have been. One moment, they stood, a three-way face-off worthy of the gods; the next, _poof!_ Gone.

When Phryane came to her senses, she was lying on the ground, soft grass tickling her arms. The sun shone brightly down and warmed her skin. She heard rustling beside her; to her right, a groan.

Instantly on high alert, she bolted upright. Why was she here? Where was her throne; her city? Reaching out, she couldn’t feel the usual thrum of Anian water that was always just at her fingertips. Her city was gone. Ani just… wasn’t there.

Her eyes flashed in anger and she turned to see the source of the groan. Beside her, Haldir lay sprawled out on the earth, as if simply dropped from the sky. They were in a clearing, Phryane realized, but it wasn’t one she recognized. The trees weren’t any she had seen before. Dazed, Haldir’s eyes opened slowly and he brought up a hand to shield them from the bright rays of the sun.

“W-Where…?” For once, the elven man seemed genuinely confused, blinking in shock. “What happened?”

“That’s exactly what I’d like to know,” Phryane heard from the tree line, and out from the woods that surrounded the clearing walked a woman with beautiful red hair piled on her head, and a dress that, while now dirtied and torn, was easily worthy of the courts of Ani. The woman deftly pulled a fan from her sleeve and snapped it open, waving it in front of her face with an air of superiority. “Eriska Taine,” she said by way of introduction with a small (and somehow mocking) curtsy. “And it seems we’ve somehow ended up together on this plane—although _surely_ you’ve figured something as simple as that out by now.” From above the rim of her fan, her eyes sparkled with mirth, and… something else. Something wild that Phryane couldn’t put her finger on. It prickled at the nape of her neck and tugged at her elven roots: the wild part of her that had briefly felt at home in the ironwood trees and the chaos that beckoned in the shadows.

Haldir scrambled to his feet, standing in front of the queen and placing a hand in his pocket to reach for his lions, but grasped only air.

“Looking for these?” Eriska snapped her fan shut and held out her hand. Nestled in her palm were two familiar statuettes. Haldir growled.

Standing as regally as one can manage with bits of grass in their hair, Phryane placed her hand on Haldir’s shoulder and sent a ripple of calm to him—just enough so that his breathing steadied. “What have you done?” She demanded, projecting an air of authority. “What caused this?”

Eriska waved her hand dismissively, and Phryane felt the magic she had sent the woman’s way dispersing in the wind. “Like I said before,” Eriska said breezily, “this isn’t my doing. I’m not nearly that powerful—at least, not yet. No, this is strong magic. A kind I’m not unfamiliar with, but… it shouldn’t be possible. As far as I’m aware—and trust me,” she smirked, “I’m aware of most things—no one in the Five Kingdoms holds this kind of power. So, logically…?”

“…It came from… outside the Five Kingdoms? Beyond the Worldstorm?” Haldir wondered.

Eriska grinned widely. “Got it in one. I knew I saw potential in you.”

“That’s impossible,” Phryane insisted, crossing her arms. “Not only would the magic have to make it through the Worldstorm—a inconceivable thought, at best—what are the odds that it would target the three of us?”

“Oh, come now, don’t be patronizing. We both know it’s not a coincidence.” Eriska gestured to Phryane with her fan. “Manipulating an entire city to its knees; keeping all those nobles in check; that stunt you tried with your voice earlier… What are you? Peace? Will?”

“…Emotion,” Phryane admitted reluctantly, narrowing her eyes.

“Ah, yes. Pelios. Now I can see it.” Eriska flashed a charming smile. “Chaos, at your service. Or not. Unpredictable is sort of my thing.”

“And me?” Haldir asked, still keeping an eye on the hand grasping his lions but addressing the woman holding them coolly.

“You? The first mortal to wield magic in gods-know how long? Color me impressed, dear. No,” she continued, “it’s not a question of who did it, or how, or those affected… it’s why. Why were we brought _here_ , to this plane?”

It was a question that none of them seemed to know the answer to.

 

After Eriska returned Lana and Yanya to Haldir, the three misplaced adventurers—Eriska, Phryane, and Haldir—formed a tenuous alliance. “After all,” Haldir calmly reasoned aloud as he had to practically hold Phryane back to keep her from tackling Eriska after a particularly scathing comment about her political choices, “if we work together, we’re far more likely to find out how to get home, and then we can fight all we like.”

The three wandered through the woods for a bit before stumbling across a wide, well-traveled trail that led them through a grassy, flat plain. To pass the time, Phryane and Eriska swapped insults, which in any other circumstances would have been simply annoying, but in their case, was a literal battle of wits. After one too many _vicious mockery_ spells left both women wincing in physical (and, with the way the insults were heading, probably emotional) pain, Haldir finally threatened to put his blade through the next person to let loose a barb. The goddesses complied, venomously glaring at one another from across the trail. All was quiet for a while.

Phryane was the first one to crack a grin, and soon the two were laughing loudly, doubling over and wiping tears from their eyes. They fell into step beside each other and began speaking so quickly and excitedly that Haldir couldn’t make any of it out. If he had to wager a guess, they were probably bonding over their shared dreams of domination or trading manipulation tactics.

“Women,” he muttered, shaking his head.

 

It wasn’t long before they came to a fork in the road.

“So,” Phryane said, looking for a trail marker and finding none, “where to from here?”

“Maybe…” Haldir cast his gaze to the south, squinting in the setting sunlight, and pointed. “There. See that?”

The others followed his example and saw it too. “Rooftops, just beyond the hill,” Eriska said, snapping her fan against her palm. “A town.”

“Exactly. Maybe we can figure out where we are there.”

“And find a bed,” Phryane added, yawning a bit. The palace in Ani had left her spoiled, she supposed, but why shouldn’t she be? She _was_ the queen.

“With what money?” Haldir pointed out, setting out towards the town.

Eriska smirked. “I wasn’t aware we were paying.”

“We need to keep a low profile,” he warned. “As far as we know, this world is like ours; they may not even know what magic is. If we act too strangely…”

“No,” Phryane said, shaking her head. “Don’t you feel it? Can’t you just taste it in the air?” She almost seemed entranced as she reached out a hand to the sky, letting small bolts of magic dance at her fingertips and watching the purple sparks fade against the orange sunset. “This world is… it’s bursting with magic. There’s more here than even Ani holds.” There was a childlike wonderment in the elf’s eyes. Eriska, however, seemed troubled.

“If that’s true… if the people here do have magic… what does that mean for us?” She quickly snapped open her fan, letting it rest against her nose as she thought. “What use are gods in a world where everyone’s a god?”

 

The town they found was quiet, but active, with children playing in the streets even as the night approached. Forty or fifty simple log buildings made up the bulk of the area, with the occasional old stone structure proudly standing among them. There seemed to be a main street of sorts running down the center, although it was little more than a glorified wagon trail, and about halfway through it branched off to the east, meandering up a hill to the ruins of a manor house.

“Where do we even start?” Haldir wondered, not at all used to this sort of environment.

“Where all good adventures start,” Eriska said cheerily. “The inn.” She pointed to a large, newly built roadhouse made of fieldstone and rough-hewn timbers. It was clearly the center of town, and hanging from the ledge of the roof was a sign that proudly proclaimed it the Stonehill Inn.

They walked into the establishment and looked around. The air was pleasantly warm, and placed around the common room were various tables and couches and other places to generally sit and talk. A roaring fire dominated the far wall, and to the right was a modest bar. Behind the bar stood a short, friendly-looking human male, who, upon hearing their entrance, grinned widely.

“Welcome to Stonehill Inn,” he said, setting down the glass he had been cleaning. “Finest establishment in all of Phandalin. What can I do for you?”

Phryane took the lead, stepping up to the counter. “We’re in need of some lodgings for the night,” she explained, giving him her well-practiced “charming” smile. “Do you have any rooms open?”

The man frowned. “Well, yes, but… we’ve had some trouble with rowdy customers lately, so most of the rooms are being repaired…” He pulled out a large ledger from under the counter, running his finger down the list of rooms. “There’s one room free that should fit you and your partners. Third one on the left, room B.” He wrote something down beside the listing and appeared to make a few quick calculations. “So, for one night, that’ll be…”

Phryane reached out and touched his hand gently, presenting him with another dazzling smile. “We’ve already paid, remember?” She pushed a little power into her words, feeling the warmth of it travel down her arm, through her fingers, and into him. His eyes glazed over and he blinked, dazed.

“Oh, yes. Silly me.” Almost mechanically, he made a small checkmark next to the room listing. “Of course.” His confusion didn’t last long, and as Phryane pulled her hand away his eyes cleared up.

“Anything else?” She asked sweetly.

“Oh, uh…” He shook his head to clear it. “No, you’re good. Breakfast starts at sunup; checkout’s around midday.” He handed over a key to the room. “Have a nice stay!”

She thanked him and turned to the team with a vaguely devious grin. “Come on.”

They made their way upstairs to their room, although what they saw inside made them pause.

“That’s…”

“…one bed,” Haldir said, finishing Phryane’s sentence. It was a rather large bed, yes, almost as wide as the one Phryane slept in at the palace, but nevertheless, it was the only bed in the room.

“He said _partners_ ,” Eriska realized, unable to contain a bubble of laughter.

“You mean he thinks…?” Haldir trailed off and Eriska nodded gleefully. He blanched.

“Well, come on, _partners_ ,” Phryane said dryly, shedding her dress down to her shift without any trace of embarrassment and placing her hands on her hips. “I call middle spoon.”


End file.
